Transfers!

Hey fam!

I get to stay another transfer! Haha I was kinda nervous but I am happy to report I will be staying for another 6 weeks. Unfortunately Elder Thomas will be transferred to Great Falls but I will be getting 2 new companions, Elder Burnham and Elder Oaks. Haha I feel like Elder Oaks and I are doomed to get tons of comments on our names....

 

I was really thinking about general conference and how important it is. I have come to know that the words of the living Prophets are more important than scripture because they are exactly what God would tell us today. I am so excited to hear what the Lord will tell us through his prophets this coming weekend! I think I have said this before but when I first started to come back to church 2 years ago I just kept praying over and over for a voice or some crazy vision to answer all the questions I have about the Gospel. Last year during the Work of Salvation broadcast Elder Holland quoted Joseph Smith who said, ""We never inquire at the hand of God for special revelation except in those cases where there is no previous revelation to suit the case." It hit me instantly that just asking alone was not enough. We need to search the scriptures and the words of the living prophets and then ponder and pray. Since then I have been on this scripture (including the words of the living prophets) frenzy and still search like crazy for different answers to questions. The awesome thing is I have this list of questions that is about a page long and as time goes on, slowly, questions are answered and new ones replace them. It's a slow process and my patience is definitely tested regularly but I really do believe this is the way God teaches us: line upon line and precept upon precept. My invitation to you all this weekend is to go into General Conference with a few very specific questions in mind. I know that one of the purposes of General Conference is to answer prayers and I promise that the Lord will give you an answer to at least one of your questions. When we pray specifically we get specific answers.

 

I am so grateful to be an Emissary of Jesus Christ! I will be forever grateful to God for allowing me to serve a mission. I have learned lessons here I couldn't learn any other way. I am so grateful for all your love and support and for all the birthday wishes!
 

Love,
Elder Holland

 

30 day challenge completed :)

Hey Fam!

This was crazy awesome!  I completed the 30 day challenge!  It seriously was one of the hardest things I have ever done. It sounds strange to say it is hard to go 30 days without saying anything bad about anyone but it is!  I feel I learned the lessons I needed to learn and will keep implementing them in my life as I go forward from here. 

 

The missionary work is going really well in our ward. We currently have 5 people who are preparing themselves to be baptized on a specific date.  We are always super busy but that's just the way I like to be :)  I just love being a part of this work because I get to see a piece of the perfect timing of God in the lives of so many.  I have seen so many miracles and just incredible things there is no way I could ever say this is not the Lord's work.

 

One of the sisters, Sister Gold, who served in the YSA ward got transferred to billings last Saturday.  She had been in that one area for a little over 10 months!  I serve in 4th ward but we also cover the YSA ward so she was a big help because she knew everyone.  Elder Bishop came to pick her up so we got to visit for a little bit.  I love the missionaries out here and def feel like I have made some great life long friends.

I am so grateful to still be serving here because we got to witness something amazing this last Saturday.  An investigator, who was baptized last April, got to baptize his son!  The son asked me to speak on the Holy Ghost so I used an object lesson. I cooked up a potato and wrapped it in foil.  I told him the potato was the Holy Ghost.  I held it by an oven mitt and threw it to him and told him to throw it back when it was too hot to hold.  Ha-ha thankfully it didn't burn him but he threw it right back.  He said it was super hot! I asked him if I were to throw it at him again if he would know immediately what the feeling was and he said yes.  I then gave him a pair of oven mitts and told him these represent the Gift of the Holy Ghost.  I threw the potato at him and he was able to hold it for the remainder of the talk.  I believe the Gift of the Holy Ghost is of the greatest gifts God has given us in this life.  To have a compass for our entire life priceless.  I know that as we keep the commandments and live in a way that the Holy Ghost can be with us always we will always be warned of things that can be damaging to us. 

Next April this family will be sealed as a family in the Salt Lake Temple.  You better believe I will be there!  They already have the appointment reserved with the Temple.  I love how as this family has continued in prayer, scripture study, church attendance, and all they can do to bring themselves closer to Christ they have a peace and a protection that can only come from God. 

I LOVE being a missionary.  someone pointed out to me last week that I just hit my 18 month mark as a Missionary which made me kinda sad but I am so grateful to have another 6 months as an Emissary of Jesus Christ!

Thank you all so much for all your love and support!  As it happens, my birthday will happen like 3 days after transfers so I do not expect anything but if you are going to send anything my way it would be best to send it early or just wait till after my birthday when I know where I will be.  I am turning 26 in 2 weeks... haha dang I'm gettin old!

Love,

Elder Holland

 

Cooling down here

Hey Fam!

Wow this week was awesome!  It is starting to really cool down here at night.  We went hiking a bunch last week in the mornings and its cold enough to see your breath which means winter is just around the corner.  Everything has not started changing color yet but things look like they are about to.  I'm stoked for fall though because it seriously is beautiful here :)

I had so many crazy answers to prayer this week. I do not have much time today but will share just one thing that came while reading the Book of Mormon.  I have been pondering why people get mad at God and why they do not accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I believe it is all about perspective.  When we serve God, read the scriptures, pray, do the things we have been taught to do since we were children we are able to truly see the hand of the Lord in our lives.  The fundamental thing that seems to push people away is their belief that they are put through trials so God can look down at them and laugh as they suffer.  They do not understand who God is and why we are given trials.  I was reading in 2 Nephi in the Book of Mormon and these 2 verses hit me like a ton of bricks, 

"23 For behold, my beloved brethren, I say unto you that the Lord God worketh not in darkness.
 24 He doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for He loveth the world, even that He layeth down His own life that He may draw all men unto him. Wherefore, He commandeth none that they shall not partake of His salvation." 

I know that this is true.  As a missionary I get to see and help so many people who are in the thick of problems in their life.  Every single person who makes time to read the scriptures, pray, and go to church has come to know this is true as well.  I invite all of you this week to consider how great God is to you and the many things he has done for you.  It truly is an overwhelming thing to think of but it also is the most humbling thing I know.  Also, I invite you to think of the trials he has given you and do your best to prayerfully put yourself in His shoes and try to understand why He would allow you to go through such intense hardships.  I promise you will come to know that EVERYTHING He does is out of love and will all work out for our benefit. 

I am so grateful for all of you and the great support you are to me, Have an excellent week!

Love,
Elder Holland

Temple was awesome!

Hey Fam!

This week was beyond exceptional :)  I feel like I had so many spiritual experiences.  We found new people who are super ready for the Gospel and to make the covenant of baptism, went to the Temple, did lots of service, and saw miracles on all kinds of levels :)

I have a really short amount of time today but this whole say nothing bad about anyone thing is really changing my life.  I had a pretty crazy inner battle last week before the Temple because I was not sure If I liked this new version of me.  I feel like I have lost a certain part of myself.  I was mainly concerned that I had lost my sense of humor but realized that the only thing I have lost is the desire, conscious or subconscious, to put others down.  It hit me super hard in the Temple that this challenge was inspired of God and even though it is super hard to continue doing it.  I am now on day 21! I am super impressed with all of you that have accepted the challenge too!  Always remember that it is okay to have to restart as long as you are learning and growing.  I have found when I celebrate the little victories in my life the quality of life I live is exponentially happier.  I still expect myself to always lift where I stand and to do all I can to be quick to observe but the difference now is I know that I can do nothing of myself.  I do all I can to rely on the mercy and grace of our Savior and have gained a strength in all things that can not be measured by the world.  I am growing to a place where even when I have a negative thought about someone I consciously tell God in my mind something I am grateful for about that person.  I know the only reason I can recognize these things is because of the Savior and I can not express how grateful to Him I am for that.  I know that He lives and loves us.  He is much more concerned with where we are going than where we have been and is always there to offer forgiveness.  He also cares much more about the offer-er than the offering.  I have so far to go and make so many mistakes every single day but am so grateful to know I am on the right path and that God is helping me.

 

I will write more next week! Thank you all so much for all of your great love and support!

Love,

Elder Holland

This week was fantastic :)

Hey Fam!

This week was fantastic :) it has been pretty crazy but super fun. I feel like if someone told me to just kick back and chill for a few hours I would go crazy... I never thought I would say this but I love being super busy all day every day :) I have been living like this pretty much for a year and a half and it has grown on me.  A couple weeks ago President Mecham, who is an extremely successful business man, said he has learned that when he does not keep himself very busy he becomes very ineffective. I agree.

So this week we had a really awesome experience.  One of the recent sister converts in our ward had something really special happen to her.  Her grand daughter had to have surgery on Saturday.  She is only 6 years old and was very nervous about the surgery. This story really helps add to my testimony of the Priesthood.  Elder Griffith and I went over about 3 weeks ago and gave her a blessing and in the blessing I was prompted to bless her with the ministering of angels as she went through this experience.  The sister said the surgery went great and as she was sitting in the hospital her granddaughter told her what happened.  She was told by the doctor that she was gonna go to a peaceful pearl white beach for a little bit and then come back.  The granddaughter said that was not at all what happened.  She said she went to a place where angels were all dressed in white and where they were in the clouds and surrounded by rainbows.  She said that there was one in particular that stayed with her the entire time.  She said he held her hand and just sat and talked with her the entire time she was there.  The sister said this was incredible to hear from her grand daughter.  When they got home the granddaughter looked at a picture on the wall and started yelling, "That's him! He is the angel that was holding my hand!"  As the sister told us this story she started to cry and pointed to the picture on the wall and said the man in the photo was her Dad.  The granddaughter had never met him.  He had passed away years ago and the sister never really understood why God had to take him so early.  She now knows that her dad is engaged in a great work of service on the other side.  As she told this story to me I felt the Holy Ghost bear witness to me that it was true.  I am so grateful to know that God loves us enough to allow those who have passed on the continue to minister to us.  I truly do feel that each of us has some sort of support from people here but the support of our family who is on the other side is much greater.

Today is day 16 without saying anything mean about anybody.  This challenge is super hard but as time goes by is actually getting easier.  Haha I think I would be devastated if I were to have to restart but that's life :) 

We are heading to Billings this afternoon to go to the Temple tomorrow!  I am so stoked it is unreal!  I have really missed the Temple.  I have not gone since December.  We are having our Zone Conference with the Temple President, President Jordan and President Mecham tomorrow morning in the chapel.  Then we will all participate in an endowment session.  I am so excited for the things we will get to learn :) 

Thanks for all you all do and the great support you are to me, I love you all!

Elder Holland